The present invention relates to a system and method for providing fuel to a combustor. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system and method for increasing the pressure of a gaseous fuel for delivery to the combustor.
Combustion turbine engines are well suited to burning many different types of fuels. Commonly, these engines burn natural gas provided at line pressure to the engine. However, combustion turbine engines, and particularly microturbine combustion engines are also well suited to burning other fuels such as methane or other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are typically available at low pressures. In order to operate efficiently using these low-pressure fuel sources, it is necessary to increase the fuel pressure for delivery to the combustor of the combustion turbine engine.
Many prior engines employ a fuel compressor that includes a slide valve that controls the compressor output (i.e., pressure or flow rate). However, slide valves increase the maintenance requirements of the compressor and are susceptible to sticking and leakage.